Hearty-Heart Recipes for your LOVE!!

Mozzarella Cheese Filled Hearts
            

Ingredients:

Cheese Filled Hearts:
flour for dusting cutting board
1 refrigerated pie crust (1/2 of a 15 oz. box ), thawed
1/4 inch thick slices of mozzarella cheese
1 egg white
optional, 1-2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese



Directions:

Unroll pie crust onto a large cutting board.  Cut 24 hearts using the larger heart cutter, re-rolling
dough as needed.Cut 12 hearts using the smaller heart cutter out of the mozzarella cheese slices.

Brush egg white over one dough heart, place a mozzarella cheese heart in the center, top it with a second dough heart, press the edges of the dough together. Repeat. Crimp edges of hearts with a fork.

Brush tops of ravioli with egg white.  Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Optional: Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over the tops of each heart. If you prefer you can brush the egg white in a heart pattern on the dough and sprinkle the cheese over top or just leave them plain. I personally like how they look and taste completely covered in the grated Parmesan cheese.

Freeze hearts for 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees and make pesto.  Puree roasted red pepper, roasted garlic, roasted almonds, parsley, lemon juice, and 3 tablespoons of parmesan cheese in a food processor, keeping puree somewhat chunky. Add oil and puree just to incorporate the oil. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Pour into a small serving bowl.  

Remove the hearts from the freezer and bake for 8-12 minutes until golden brown. Be sure to keep an eye on them during the last few minutes of baking. If the cheese begins to ooze out of the pie crust hearts, remove them from the oven. If some cheese does ooze out, you can cut it off using a knife.